Anemone shrinkage

[msteele]

My green carpet anemone who looked very healthy at the store and for the first 4 days that it was home now looks like it is shrivelling up, and almost looks like it is going to "turn inside out". It has not lost or changed it's colour.

I purchased it along with two maroon clownfish who are both hosting in it. The large female has done nothing but move it around the tank by pushing on it. She has dug a little hole for it in the substrate by flicking her tail and sweeping the aragonite away. I originally placed it on a rock and she knocked it to the floor.

Is the fish stressing it? Is it hungry (I understand that the clowns feed it when they feed - and they certainly are eating!)? Do I need to do anything for it? Should I be worried?

My ammonia, nitrites and nitrates are all at 0.

Any advice would be helpful. Thank you.

 

[jandree22]

what's your lighting and what's your tank size?

 

[shr00m]

as long as your lights and water quality are adequate then its normal... they do this from time to time... kind of like expelling waste.

 

[Unarce]

It's always best to let the anemone fully acclimate to a new system for at least a week before allowing it to host clownfish. Large clowns, like maroons, can be pretty rough with them.

 

[Quigonsean]

You must feed it. Do not rely on the clowns only. If you read actual stuff by people who deal with these animals like Joyce Wilkerson you'll find they need fed daily, in fact most consume 3% of there body weight daily in food. Give it krill shreaded seafood mysis etc... but feed it or it will die. It will literally consume its owne tissue starving to death.

Sean

 

[shr00m]

actually anemones are photosynthetic.... its ok to feed them , but definitley not needed every single day if at all once a week......

 

[reefsnreptiles1]

actually anemones are photosynthetic.... its ok to feed them , but definitley not needed every single day if at all once a week......

It really depends upon the anemone species and the health of the anemone. A bleached anemone must rely completely on feedings for its energy as it will not be able to get energy from the light. In our experience most carpet anemones do best if fed 2-3 times a week (they are fish eaters by nature and should be fed accordingly). Another example would be H. magnifica (ritteri anemones) which will begin to wander if not fed on a regular basis.

 

[Quigonsean]

Photosynthisis does not provide everything for an anemone like it does for an sps. In captivity it must be fed everyday if you wanna get more than a year or so out of it.

Sean

 

[shr00m]

yes if the anemone is bleached then feeding is necessary... you do not need to feed anemones daily i cant believe noone else is chiming in to stifle this misinformation, if just is not neccessary to feed anemones everyday.... you are wrong, i have seen anemones split again and again that have only got food from tank feedings.... it is well known that anemones survive and do very well when only fed indirectly.... you are talking nonsense.

 

[shr00m]

the post was about the anemone shrinking .... its very normal for anemones to "shrink" and expel waste, unless it stays like this this is not a sign of distress. i respect your opinion, but its just not true that anemones need to be fed daily...... it wont hurt for them to be fed indirectly daily sure... but its not neccessary to feed them every day.... they do not even eat everyday in the wild. at least not more than they would get by being fed indirectly (you could maybe argue this fact, but i would be willing to bet its close to the same amount) point is most people never feed and if tank conditions are good then anemones that are fed only indirectly or none at all will prosper and even reproduce.

 

[reefsnreptiles1]

point is most people never feed and if tank conditions are good then anemones that are fed only indirectly or none at all will prosper and even reproduce.

Most people never feed? MANY people directly feed their anemones. With some anemones (BTA's for example) you can get away with not feeding as much (although Dr. Mac, someone who has been very successful at captive propagated BTAs, feeds their BTAs on a regular basis). However, other anemone species (especially H. magnifica) should be fed on a regular basis (H. magnifica will wander if not fed regularly). Carpet anemones are fish eaters by nature and will not get enough food if you just rely on indirect feedings.

Here is a good article on anemone diets from Dr. Ron Shimek:

http://www.animalnetwork.com/fish2/aqfm ... efault.asp

 

[Quigonsean]

Well according to just about every saltwater mag since Nov, did a big Nemo thing and covered Anemones all said daily feeding is a must, Joyce Wilkerson in Clownfishes said daily feeding is a must. Every reputible magazine that has written on it in the last 6 monthes says daily feeding is a must. I go with them the ones keepin them alive more than a year or two.

Sean

 

[Ben1]

I don't feed my BTA's. I used to every other day untill the split to much for me to control. The capture food from the mysis I feed every day.

On the other hand I have always feed my H. Malu every other day. It was a solid purple. I went of vacation and didn't want to make the care taker feed the anemone and figured it would catch some food from the tank feedings. When I returned home from the 15 day vacation the anemone was half the size and very bleached. It wouldnt even accept food after I returned. That was last may, I did get it to take mysis by gentally spraying them on the oral disc. After anouther month or so it regained its stick and was able to take chopped silversides. Now it is feed everyother day with whole silversides and in the last month regained some brown patchs in the oral disc. It seems that it finally got back some zooxanthellea and will make a full recovery. Who knows if it will every regain the solid purple it once had, and took forever to get back some zoo.

What I am trying to say some anemones may be able to live on no or very little direct feedings while others will quickly perish with out direct feeding. How much should depend on the size and type of anemone.

If the anemone has shrunk make sure it is in enough light, proper currnet, no one is picking at it and it is being properly fed. If it starts to reject food or is not able to feed properly then try lightly spraying mysis shrimp dethawed and soaked it selcon over the anemone. Joyces book actually says that feeding is not needed with BTA that have a clown hosted in them as they will obtain food this way.



HTH

 

[Anonymous]

fft i even feed my corals sometimes just for fun. i had two huge green mushrooms and they were voracious eaters.